Many pastimes can require individuals to explore isolated terrain, thus leaving these individuals stranded in the event of an unforeseen emergency, such as a medical emergency and/or weather-related hazard. For example, in the winter, many outdoor sports come with the risk of the participant being injured and possibly stranded in calamitous events (e.g., avalanches).
In fact, millions of people throughout the world enjoy outdoor activities that expose them to the perils of snow-related accidents. Every year many avid outdoor sportsmen and women are victimized by snow-related disasters associated with unanticipated avalanches. Although great efforts are dedicated toward pre-emptive control of potential avalanches, backcountry and on-piste skiers, off-piste skiers, snowboarders, snowshoers, mountaineers, hikers and snowmobilers fall victim to the perils of being buried by avalanches.
In most cases, there are precious minutes available to the timely location and rescue of avalanche victims, particularly when they are incapacitated physically by being buried and unable to move or breathe or rendered unconscious. Timely search and rescue of avalanche victims is essential if lives are to be saved.
A disadvantage of present systems and methods is that they are only operational if the person with the emergency device, for example, the position-indicating radio beacon (EPIRB), is conscious and is physically able to activate the device.
In addition to well-trained and equipped and experienced search-and-rescue teams, present methods of avalanche rescue utilize a multi-faceted approach, and sometimes combine known methods, which include avalanche cords, beacons, probes, shovels, and the RECCO rescue system. The RECCO system is a two-part system, which includes a rescue team with hand-held devices, which detect “reflectors,” which are small passive transponders, which can be affixed to outerwear, boots, helmets and other types of body-protection components of individuals.
Another search tool that is utilized often in conjunction with RECCO, is avalanche beacons. In use since 2000, avalanche beacons are devices worn by individuals who activate a radio signal indicating an emergency. The radio-emitting beacon is picked up by rescue transceivers, using a digital display, thus helping to locate the victim within a reasonably tight range of location. However, this system requires that the victim be conscious and physically capable of activating the beacon-emitting signal apparatus.
A challenge of present methods is that they are not integrated into a single solution. Thus, many adventurers utilize a variety of different tools at once, in the hopes that one works in the event of an emergency. In fact, in 2010, the French National Association for the Study of Snow and Avalanches (ANENA) recommended that all off-piste skiers should carry beacons, probes, shovels and RECCO reflectors. In addition to this recommendation, many backcountry adventurers also carry: SPOT satellite GPS messengers, Mountain Locator Units (MLU), Personal Locator Beacons (PLB) and Globalstars.